Cannabis News

The HEMP Embassy Headlines are a selection of recent articles from news services and media sources primarily concerning Cannabis issues, the consequences of prohibition and the challenges for law reform. Here are the selected headlines for this week.

Embassy HEADLINES Issue 312

July 12, 2018

AUSTRALIA & NZ

On the 3rd of July, many major Australian news outlets published articles condemning medical cannabis by suggesting that it has no efficacy in treating chronic non-cancer pain. The study in question was published in The Lancet, a highly regarded scientific journal. This makes it easy to understand why Australian journalists would think that the information being presented to them was trustworthy. However, the science underpinning the study’s claims is questionable. As noted by Hannah Southcott from SBS, “cannabis was not legal in Australia during the trial, which meant that participants were consuming illegally-obtained cannabis, not medical grade product”. This brings in to question the validity and relevance of the sample population, which in fact deals a serious blow to the data collected from the study.

Medical cannabis grown by Tasmanian Alkaloids will be used in products to treat the five million Australians living with chronic pain, but the legalisation of the export of medicinal cannabis products in February opened up further markets for the partnership.

Medlab Clinical has claimed it has received positive feedback from doctors prescribing its cannabis-based medicine NanaBis for the pain management of cancer patients. The Australian medical life sciences company today reported that patient recruitment was currently underway for an advanced clinical trial of the drug, which has already been approved under the Therapeutic Goods Administration’s Special Access Scheme for supply to medical practitioners for use with patients suffering cancer pain.

A pioneering study has found Australian parents who turned to medicinal cannabis to treat children with epilepsy overwhelmingly (75 percent) considered the extracts as “effective”. Contrary to parental expectations, extracts generally contained low doses of cannabidiol (CBD) – commonly considered to be a key therapeutic element and that has been successfully used in recent clinical trials to treat epilepsy.

The message of Addicted? is largely about challenging the dangerous myths around drug use and advocating a more sensible approach: “The causes of addiction are generalised: living in a rough area, being of lower-than-average intelligence, being of low socio-economic status, belonging to a particular culture, even having a certain skin colour. The inner qualities of addicts are also overgeneralised: they have no self-control, no willpower, no ambition, or have simply given up on life…Rarely, if ever, is substance dependence viewed as a health issue, affliction of the mind and body, perpetuated by poor or risky health-related behaviour.”

An Auckland start-up has signed a deal with the Auckland University of Technology in a bid to produce cheaper, locally made medical cannabis. The company, PharmaCann, hopes the partnership will eventually help develop high-quality cannabis products which are a fraction of the price of the existing, imported cannabis medicines in New Zealand.

NORTH AMERICA

Maine lawmakers on Monday overwhelmingly voted to override Gov. Paul LePage’s veto of a sweeping medical marijuana bill that will allow doctors to recommend cannabis to patients for any medical reason.

In fact, according to new data from the U.S. Attorney General’s Office, total marijuana arrests in California fell from almost 14,000 in 2016 to a little over 6,000 in 2017 – a 56% drop. When you look at the numbers for felony cannabis offense arrests, you see those fell from almost 8,000 in 2016 to a little over 2,000 in 2017, a decline of 74%.

Orlando Attorney John Morgan has been fighting for Floridians’ right to medical marijuana for quite a few years now – and now he’s shifting towards plans to get a recreational cannabis initiative on the 2020 ballot. This news comes shortly after a Florida appeals court reversed a judge ruling that had lifted the smoking ban that prevents some medical marijuana patients from having access to the medicine they need in the specific form they need it. For now, the legal battle continues – and Morgan is taking his fight for smokable medical cannabis one step further.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has denied a request from an anti-legalization group to place marijuana and its derivatives on a list of restricted substances that are not “generally recognized as safe and effective.”

With cannabis now legal in some form in two-thirds of the states, it’s becoming increasingly ridiculous that entrepreneurs aren’t afforded the freedom to access traditional financing. But with cannabis still considered a schedule 1 drug (the same as heroin) on the federal level, it’s just too risky for big national banks to offer loans or lines of credit to cannabis companies. In addition, simple banking mechanisms, such as a checking account, are not afforded to cannabis related businesses.

Early signs of a boom abound: Marijuana growers have plowed millions into investments that, without having recorded profits yet, have stock-market values measured in billions. Down-on-their-luck towns like Chesterville, Ontario, hope that marijuana will reverse economic decline. Former politicians and law-enforcement officials who once opposed legalizing recreational marijuana have now joined or formed companies to cash in on it.

Cannabis retailing isn’t Doug Ford’s top priority as Ontario’s new premier. But it’s on his agenda. As he said in June: “The stated goal … is to ensure that we can tackle the illegal market.” To pursue that goal, Ontario and other provinces with only public sector cannabis retailing have a lot to do before sales begin Oct. 17.

UK & EUROPE

Ronnie Cowan, Scottish National Party MP for Inverclyde, said in a BBC interview that GPs should be able to prescribe cannabis-based medicines, after criticising the creation of a new patient review panel.

Harvey Nichols has launched a luxury CBD oil-infused skincare range from a brand called MGC Derma. The brand was created by an Australian pharmaceutical company (MGC Pharma) specialising in medical cannabis (it’s legal there), who worked with an established Israeli cosmetics company, who manufacture products for the likes of Estee Lauder and Elizabeth Arden, to design the premium range.

To be fair, the members of the expert panel are hardly a surprise. It’s the medical establishment writ large. The chairman, Dr John McBride, was, according to Charlotte Caldwell, “instrumental” in stopping Billy’s medicine being prescribed, despite the original prescription coming from a consultant neurologist specialising in paediatric epilepsy.

On Sunday, political leftist Andrés Manuel López Obrador won a landslide victory to become Mexico’s next president, effective December 1st. Having proclaimed a desire to transition away from pursuing criminal charges for people who consume drugs and toward treatment-based programs, his government could be the one to finally repeal cannabis prohibition in Mexico.

Most people don’t realize this important fact but Israel is amongst the first countries to legalize medical marijuana. It’s also one of the only three countries with a government-sponsored cannabis program. In fact, the Israel government recently took major steps towards legalizing the export of medical cannabis.

HEALTH & SCIENCE

A recent study published on WebMD about senior citizens and medical cannabis is so important to the normalization of cannabis. From the article: In a new survey, those who turned to it [cannabis] for treating chronic pain reported it reduced pain and decreased the need for opioid painkillers.Nine out of 10 liked it so much they said they’d recommend medical pot to others.“I was on Percocet and replaced it with medical marijuana. Thank you, thank you, thank you,” said one senior.

I do not want to fall into the trap of describing all women who use drugs during pregnancy as vulnerable, but many are, and some are amongst the most vulnerable in our society who need our support not condemnation. My experience is that often no one is more critical of their drug use during pregnancy than the women themselves.

Medical cannabis as a treatment for CINV has not been investigated enough in clinical trials to compare the benefits with conventional anti-emetic drugs, and it remains controversial. Although not approved by the NCCN for CINV, patients are showing interest in using medical marijuana for emesis treatment. After widespread legalization of medical cannabis for various illnesses, including cancer, investigating the safety and efficacy in this patient population might be worth trying.

It is possible to extract oils from cannabis plants in a number of ways, often using alcohol, solvents, or supercritical CO2. After extracting the crude oil from the cannabis plant, the oil is purified by distillation. Cannabinoids can be extracted individually to yield clear and clean distillates that are 99% pure and this is done by controlling the pressure and temperature of distillation in a process known as short-path distillation.

No part of the cannabis plant is useless. While the buds and leaves usually take center stage, it turns out there are more to the roots than what many of us assumed. In fact, people have been incorporating cannabis roots into medicine for thousands of years. Check out these 10 things you probably never knew about cannabis roots!

Growing evidence suggests that hallucinogenic drugs can help quell depression. Following the government’s review of medicinal cannabis last month, Jack Dutton asks whether we are at a turning point in drug policy.

FUNDRAISERS/CAMPAIGNS

21 June Breaking news! Tony has been released on bail. Tony of Mullaway’s Medical Cannabis has once again been arrested for growing his cannabis medicine! Tony makes cannabis tincture for children with epilepsy and countless others with cancer, chronic pain, ms and the list goes on. Tony Bower has dedicated his life to helping others and now needs your help. All Donations would be greatly appreciated.

Andrew is behind bars again and may be there until the trial starts in November unless a Supreme Court appeal passes. Funds to date have gone to a legal team plus barrister. More recently a lawyer has been engaged to appear in court RE the current matter. 3 lawyers will now have visited Andrew in jail since the beginning of his first in Parklea and now in the Hunter Valley.

Let’s get real about cannabis.The “war on drugs” has been lost. These days, millions of Australians choose to use cannabis and countries all around the world are changing their laws after realising prohibition does more harm than good. It’s high time we joined them and legalised it. That’s why I’m proud to announce today that the Greens are launching our national plan to legalise cannabis for adult use.

EVENTS

MEDICAN WEEKENDS at the BUSH THEATRE, Nimbin [Hemp Embassy]

The next Medican Workshops will be on the weekend of October 20/21 and then January 19/20, 2019. Entry by donation, beside the river at Nimbin’s Bush Theatre. Starting at 11 am and aiming to finish by 420! Learn how to make and use Cannabis as medicine!

Speaker presentations from the Nimbin Medican Workshop, last weekend 23-24 June 2018, are now online. Big thanks to Disco Sista for documenting the many medican workshops that the Embassy has hosted in Nimbin over the past 3 years. If you’ve missed these amazing gatherings, then you can still watch the speakers online: Click on this link to head to Disco Sista’s Nimbin Medican YouTube Channel.

IF YOU WANT IT: When Phil Bromley moved from Sydney to one of Australia’s most famous and surprisingly largest tourism destinations, Nimbin he felt like he’d found home. Six years on, after observing and experiencing the relentless police harassment and mainstream media victimization of his new hometown, Phil felt it was time to let the town tell their story in their own words. ‘Exposing The War On Drugs’ is an eight part radio documentary series that looks at how the war on drugs has affected Australia and the rest of the world. Broadcast around Australia on the Community Radio Network, from the 18th April and podcast at https://player.whooshkaa.com/shows/exposing-the-war-on-drugs . With the spotlight on Nimbin, Australia’s most famous “alternative” town, the team from NIM FM, (Nimbin’s local community radio station), explore drug prohibition, medicinal cannabis, addiction and Nimbin itself; and offer some solutions to the costly drug war that has raged since the early 1930s.

Entheogenesis Australis (EGA) would like to thank the psychedelic community for it’s ongoing support and attendance at our recent Psychedelic Symposium. Since the event we’ve had a lot of inquiries about obtaining copies of the new EGA Journal 4 and other special merchandise. To browse, please feel free to head to the EGA Shop online or click on the items below. This is also your chance to pick up classic and new T-shirt designs. Please keep in mind much of the stock is very limited so don’t delay!